Multi-purpose draining valve

Abstract

A valve body comprises a first sealing seat and a second seat opposite the first. The valve element is selectively controlled so that, in addition to the position in which a bearing surface thereof rests on the first seat to ensure tightness of the device and of the circuit on which it is mounted, the valve element can be placed in a median position between the two seats, so as to provide a maximum flowing section between the valve element and the valve body for draining the circuit. In intermediate positions, another bearing surface of the valve element works in cooperation with the second seat, the valve element being held in a position selected between the first median position and a resting position on the second seat, thus limiting the flowing section between the valve element and the second seat to control the discharge of the circuit.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A valve device for the sealing, draining or regulated discharging of a gaseous fluid circuit comprising: (a) a valve body provided with opposed first and second sealing seats;   (b) a valve element disposed inside the valve body for movement along an axis of the device, the valve element being provided with opposed first and second bearing surfaces;   (c) the first and second sealing seats being, respectively, engagable by the first and second bearing surfaces for tightly separating a zone situated downstream of the device from a zone situated upstream of the device;   (d) control means, including a control unit and a support, for moving the valve element along the axis of the device to a predetermined position and maintaining the valve element in such position;   (e) the control unit including a first part joined to the valve body by the support, and a second part movable along the axis of the device, the second part being joined to the valve element; and   (f) the connection between the control unit and the support, and the connection between the control unit and the valve element being articulated and so disposed that their articulation axes are orthogonal one with respect to the other, and with respect to the axis of the device.   
     
     
       2. The device of claim 1 further including a tripod bracket rigidly fixed to the valve body, and the control unit includes a hydroelectric generating set supported by the tripod bracket. 
     
     
       3. The device of claim 1 further including: (a) first and second diverging skirts for guiding the flow of gaseous fluid when the valve element is disposed in a draining or regulated discharging position to protect the control means;   (b) the first diverging skirt being fixed to the support and the second diverging skirt being fixed to the valve element; and   (c) the diverging skirts being slidable one into the other during translation of the valve element.   
     
     
       4. The device of claim 1 wherein the first sealing is disposed on the side of the device furthermost from the circuit, the second sealing is disposed on the side of the device closest to the circuit, and the second bearing surface of the valve element being engageable on the second sealing seat for isolating the circuit from the first sealing seat. 
     
     
       5. The device of claim 1 further including a flange tightly joining the first sealing seat to the valve body, the inner dimensions of the first seat at the level of the flange being such as to permit the passage of the valve element when the first seat is either mounted in the device or removed therefrom. 
     
     
       6. The device of claim 5 wherein the first sealing seat includes a first annular chamber on its periphery for circulating a cooling fluid therethrough, means for flowing in a protective fluid, the flowing means being distributed on the circumference of the first sealing seat and includes a second annular chamber disposed on the periphery of the first annular chamber, the second annular chamber being connected by a plurality of injection nozzles to the surface of the first sealing seat engageable by the first bearing surface and to an ejection chamber defined by an annular recess provided at the level of the inner circumference of the joining plane between the valve body and the flange. 
     
     
       7. The valve device of claim 1 wherein the valve element includes two male parts of truncated configuration, the male parts being reversed and joined together at their largest diameter, the male parts defining the first and second bearing surfaces, and a conical part joined to the smaller diameter of the second male part. 
     
     
       8. The valve device of claim 1 with the control means disposing either the first bearing surface in engagement on the first sealing seat for sealing the device or positioning the second bearing surface at a predetermined distance with respect to the second sealing seat so that the distance between the second bearing surface and second sealing seat regulates discharging of gas flow out of the circuit. 
     
     
       9. A valve device for sealing, draining and regulated discharging of a gaseous fluid circuit, comprising: (a) a valve body provided with a opposed first and second sealing seats;   (b) a valve element disposed inside the valve body for movement along an axis of the device, the valve element being provided with opposed first and second bearing surfaces and including two male parts of truncated configuration, the male parts being reversed and joined together at their largest diameter, the male parts defining the first and second bearing surfaces, and a conical part joined to the smaller diameter of the second male part;   (c) the first and second sealing seats being, respectively, engagable by the first and second bearing surfaces for tightly separating a zone situated downstream of the device from a zone situated upstream of the device;   (d) control means for moving the valve element to a predetermined position and maintaining the valve element in such position, the control means disposing either the first bearing surface in engagement on the first sealing seat for sealing the device or positioning the second bearing surface at a predetermined position with respect to the second sealing seat so that the distance between the second bearing surface and second sealing seat regulates discharging of gas flow out of the circuit; and   (e) a support, the control means including first and second parts, the first part being joined to the valve body by the support, the second part being movable along the axis of the device and joined to the valve element, and wherein the connection of the valve element with the control means and the connection of the valve element with the support being articulated and so disposed that their articulation axis are orthogonal one with respect to the other, and with respect to the axis of the device.   
     
     
       10. The device of claim 9 further including a tripod bracket rigidly fixed to the valve body, and the control means includes a hydroelectric generating set supported by the tripod bracket. 
     
     
       11. The device of claim 9 further including first and second diverging skirts for guiding the flow of gaseous fluid when the valve element is in a draining or regulated discharging position and for protecting the control means, the first and second skirts being fixed, respectively, on the support and on the valve element and being slidable one into the other during the displacement of the valve element. 
     
     
       12. The device of claim 11 further including forced ventilation means disposed within the diverging skirts.